New school board boundaries considered

Using information from the 2010 U.S. Census, Sunnyside School District is working on redrawing director district lines to ensure the Sunnyside School Board represents a near equal amount of people.

In a public meeting held yesterday (Thursday) at the Lincoln Building on South Sixth Street, Sunnyside School District's Executive Director of Finance and Operations Jeff Loe revealed those new boundaries.

There Sunnyside School Board is made up of five people from five different districts to represent a cross section of Sunnyside residents. In redrawing the director district boundaries, future candidates for the school board will need to ensure they live in a district up for election.

The old district boundaries based on the 2000 census left some districts with a higher population than the others after the recent census results came in. Its highest is district four with 5,128 people, while its lowest is district two with 4,705 people.

Despite the differences being within 423 people, the Sunnyside School Board made the decision to redraw the district boundaries to keep the districts as evenly populated as possible.

The results are that districts one, two and three will gain new territory from district four. District five will remain the same.

One census block south of South Hill Road and north of I-82 will join district five. This block includes about 31 people, Mike Vachon from ESD 105 revealed.

Three census blocks north of East Woodin Road and south of Van Belle Road will join district two. It will have Scoon Road as a western boundary. Approximately 100 people are in this section and will be added to district two.

District one will add 146 people and five census blocks to their territory. It will include a far north boundary along Van Belle Road and two separate western boundaries that do not correspond to streets.

These changes will leave the district's high and low population within 83 people of each other.

A map of the proposed boundary changes will be at the Sunnyside School Board's regularly scheduled meeting on Thursday, April 28. The 7 p.m. meeting in the Denny Blaine boardroom will include a public discussion on the proposed boundaries before the school board votes on the changes.